June 2, 2017

The Battle of Midway Still Teaches the Value of Intelligence, Decisive Action

Heavy smoke rolls from stack of the USS Yorktown after the aircraft carrier was damaged heavily by Japanese aircraft June 4 in The Battle of Midway...

May 31, 2017

Innovation and Victory at the Battle of Midway

When I take a look at the arc of history in the Pacific, in particular the history of the Pacific Fleet, one of the things I find most compelling is the immense shift that took place at the Battle of Midway. For decades prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor, our Navy was centered around our battleships. By the time we fought at Midway just six months

May 25, 2017

Ensign George H. Gay's Fateful Day, June 4, 1942

For Ensign George H. Gay, Jr. of Waco, Texas, the morning of June 4, 1942 began with groggy trepidation. With knowledge of a large Japanese invasion fleet moving towards Midway Island outnumbering the assembled American naval force, Gay did not sleep well. He and his fellow aviators of Torpedo Squadron 8 (VT-8) aboard the carrier Hornet (CV-8)

June 4, 2016

Reflections on the Battle of Midway from the PACFLT Basement

Editor's note: The following blog was written by Capt. Dale Rielage and first appeared on Station HYPO. Captain Rielage serves as Director for Intelligence and Information Operations for U.S. Pacific Fleet. He has served as 3rd Fleet N2, 7th Fleet Deputy N2, Senior Intelligence Officer for China at the Office of Naval Intelligence and Director of

June 3, 2014

Battle of Midway Q & A's

Capt. Henry Hendrix (Ph.D), Naval History and Heritage Command director and Robert Cressman, NHHC historian answer questions about the Battle of Midway in this five part series.

June 3, 2014

Battle of Midway: Naval War College Lecture

On June 3 at 1:30 p.m. ET, the Naval War College commemorates the Battle of Midway with a lecture by historian and author Jonathan Parshall, co-author of the book Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway. Making extensive use of untapped Japanese primary sources, including Imperial Japanese operation records, Parshall reconstructed

May 7, 2014

On Course to Midway: The Battle of Coral Sea

Japanese Aircraft Carrier Shokaku 1941 Courtesy Government of Japan...

Nov. 26, 2013

Battle of Midway lecture offers fascinating detail into US Navy victory

SBD "Dauntless" dive bombers from USS Hornet (CV-8) approaching the burning Japanese heavy cruiser Mikuma to make the third set of attacks on her, during the early afternoon of 6 June 1942. Mikuma had been hit earlier by strikes from Hornet and USS E...

June 7, 2013

Midway Operational Lesson

MIDWAY'S OPERATIONAL LESSON: THE NEED FOR MORE CARRIERSThe Japanese employing six aircraft carriers at one time, as they did in the attack on Oahu on December 7, 1941, proved a radical undertaking. The U.S. Navy's carriers, by contrast, had never numbered more than two or three during infrequent maneuvers, and the war's coming in 1941 found only

June 7, 2013

Midway Tactical Lessons

Tactical Lesson of Midway: The Thach WeaveWhen the U.S. Navy entered the war in the Pacific, fighting squadron aircraft strength stood at 18 planes. Operational experience, showed that more fighters were needed, to (1) protect the carrier herself and (2) to protect the attack groups composed of dive/scout bombers and torpedo bombers. Even when